A great list of simple, quick suggestions for implementing social media in the classroom. There are a few English-specific entries, but any of them can be adapted to fit any content area. – brianbetteridge

Sites such as Facebook and Twitter and tools such as Skype are connecting students to learning opportunities in new and exciting ways.

Whether you teach an elementary class, a traditional college class, or at an online university, you will find inspirational ways to incorporate social media in your classroom with this list. Ideas for K-12 Classrooms Implement these great ideas in your K-12 classroom to have students learning in a dynamic new way. Make literature real.

This article is an interesting reflection on using social media to teach literature from an English teacher. It's a great first-hand account. – brianbetteridge

Used under licence with Kozzi®.

All rights reserved. If you’re like me, your initial reaction to Twitter is, “why would I want to use a tool to check up on useless celebrity thoughts?” But once I learned the educational power of Twitter, especially for the English classroom, I was convinced.
50 Ways to Use Twitter in the Classroom. Many critics of Twitter believe that the 140-character microblog offered by the ubiquitous social network can do little for the education industry.

This list is full of fun ideas for using Twitter. While not English specific in nature, there are many that can be adapted. I'm planning to use the "Keep track of memes" idea in my Introduction to Literature class next year. – brianbetteridge

They are wrong.

K-12 teachers have taken advantage of Twitter’s format to keep their classes engaged and up-to-date on the latest technologies. The following projects provide you and your students with 50 ways to Twitter in the classroom to create important and lasting lessons.
The Promise and the Peril: Social networking in the English Langu.

This academic article provides solid educational context for the use of any social networking in a language arts class. A must read for anyone researching this topic. – brianbetteridge

3 Tips for High School Teachers to Use Social Media Responsibly In Class. Social media is popular among teens, but not among their teachers.

Proper social media etiquette must be practiced by students and teachers regardless of content area. This short list is a concise introduction to using social media properly. – brianbetteridge

Eighty-seven percent of K-12 teachers have not integrated social media into classroom learning, according to a new survey from the University of Phoenix College of Education.

North Carolina educator Ike Smith says high school teachers may be grappling with how to take social media, which is relatively new, and integrate it into their existing practice. "In high school, another layer to that anxiety can be that my students are also on the social media platform that I may want to use," says Smith, a former high school teacher, who is now director of instructional support services for Watauga County Schools. Teachers may not know if or how to interact with their students professionally online​, he says.

Teaching Tolerance - Diversity, Equity and Justice. Last spring, a New Jersey middle school principal saw a rise in bullying at his school.

If you're looking for a rationale to justify adding social media exercises in your English class, check this resource out. It provides excellent, real-world insight into the power of social media learning. – brianbetteridge

What was worse, the principal said, his school’s guidance counselor was spending the majority of her day dealing with the emotional fallout. The principal had had enough. He emailed a letter to parents, asking them to forbid their children from participating on any social networking sites. Experts say the principal’s frustration was understandable—but his solution was simply not practical.
Connecting a Classroom: Reflections on Using Social Media With My Students.

First hand accounts of using social media in the classroom are always excellent resources. This article is a great summary of one teacher's experiences. – brianbetteridge

Mark Brumley: "Seven Social Media Lesson Ideas for the Classroom"
Social media meets students on their own turf and provides an engaging avenue to learning.

Like other lists, this resource can be adapted for any content area. Many of the ideas, such as microblogging, can be useful in the English classroom. Students could easily microblog a novel. – brianbetteridge

In this guest article, take a look at using social networks and microblogging.

Let’s jump in and take a look at several lesson ideas. 1. Frontloading Frontloading, also known as the reverse classroom, is when the bulk of your lessons are taught as homework through student interaction.
The Schoenblog: Social Media in the Classroom: Students' Future Resumes?
Sunday, July 12, 201511:00 AM This week I began my more scholarly reading and writing by reading the April 2015 issue of the ISTE publication, entrsekt.

Many students and teacher openly wonder why social media should be taught in classroom. This article presents a great reason why; social media is a new kind of resume! – brianbetteridge

I enjoyed many of the articles and found a common theme between a few: students' online lives.

One article, "Social Media Presence is Modern Day Resume" by Patrick Larkin, posed the question in the image above: are our students receiving the support they need to put their best digital foot forward?
How to Use Social Media in a Low-Tech Classroom. Sarah Varland uses Twitter to show multiple character perspectives from the same play in her 9th grade classroom at Schurz High School, 2014.

For schools that do not have access to technology, these ideas are great to use social media without a computer. I used similar techniques before my school digitized our classrooms, and they were quite effective, particularly when studying novels and learning about characterization. – brianbetteridge

No tech?

No problem.
Should teachers be using social media in the classroom?
Photo by David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images Editor’s note: About once a month, the NewsHour’s editorial staff huddles in our conference room to brainstorm ideas for “theme weeks” where we explore a single topic from all different — and sometimes surprising — angles.

This is an opinion-based article that argues for the inclusion of social media in modern lessons. It's a persuasive take on a hot topic, with many implications for teachers of all content areas. – brianbetteridge

The idea for an off-the-grid week came up.

Stories about energy, geography and even fine arts were pitched. We also talked about the social media “grid” and asked, how long do we keep our children off the grid and is there value in young people engaging with social tools from Instagram to iPad apps?
Social Networks for ELA Students and Teachers. Jump to navigation Donate Check out what's new in: Bookmark.

This resource provides suggestions for specific social media tools that might be useful in different levels of language arts instruction. It's a really helpful and specific source. – brianbetteridge

English Classes Use Facebook, Social Media to Teach Writing.

This Facebook article shares some great insights into how social media can improve a student's writing skills and adapt them for the 21st century. – brianbetteridge

Using social media in language teaching and learning.

This is another scholarly article about the impact of social media in learning new languages. Many learning proper English grammar could benefit from these insights. – brianbetteridge

Social Media Has Changed Our Language.

This is a fascinating article about how the English language has changed due to social media. Language such as "text speak" is often derided, but it is having a definite impact on our writing and literature. – brianbetteridge

Social Media Makes for Better Student Writing, Not Worse, Teachers Say. Occasionally, Jennifer Woollven, an English teacher at West Lake High School in Austin, Texas, finds some Twitter speak -- a FWIW or an "ur" -- in a paper.

This article presents the opinions and perspective of an English teacher. She relays how social media has improved her students' writing and provides some great insights and ideas. – brianbetteridge

But most of the time she finds that her students are paying a lot more attention when it comes to their writing assignments, especially when they know it might be shared via Twitter itself. "As an English teacher who is trying to improve student writing, one thing I see is that people are seeing greater ownership of their writing when they know it will be seen beyond the class and the teacher," Woollven, 40, said. She has many of her 10th-grade students post their essays and creative-writing assignments on blogs. Woollven's students aren't the only ones who have found motivation, thanks to digital tools and social media.
Can Social Networking Boost Literacy Skills?
The findings of two recent literacy studies in Great Britain will come as no surprise to many parents and may also help to explain why students are reluctant to do homework.

In a society where children are becoming more and more reluctant to read, this article discusses how social media might fill the gap and increase literacy and writing in real world scenarios. – brianbetteridge

These studies reveal that most young people never pick up a book—at least not outside of school. In fact, about one in five reads blogs and magazines only.
Facebook Has Transformed My Students' Writing—for the Better - Andrew Simmons. The Internet has ruined high-school writing.

This is another wonderful first hand account of how Facebook has helped students improve their writing. It is a fantastic argument for the efficacy of social media in an ELA classroom. – brianbetteridge

Write the line on the board five hundred times like Bart Simpson. Remember and internalize it. Intone it in an Andy Rooney-esque grumble. I've heard the line repeated by dozens of educators and laypeople.
How to Use Social Media to Strengthen Student Writing. Rusul Alrubail , Writer on education, teaching and learning.

While other articles have given excellent rationale for social media as a vehicle for writing instruction, this article provides specific reasons and insights into why this approach is effective. It is a must read. – brianbetteridge

Chief Education Officer at The Writing Project Posted 02/13/2016 7:50PM | Last Commented 03/18/2016 4:24AM. Does Texting Harm Students’ Writing Skills?
The explosion of social media has completely changed the way we communicate with each other.

Social media is too often lumped together with short-handed "text speak." This article discusses why that is not a fair assessment and provides rationale for texting and social media as a driver of writing improvement. – brianbetteridge

Whether via laptop computers, advanced mobile devices, Wi-Fi or enhanced 4G wireless networks, we are more connected than ever to everyone we know. While this communications boom has been praised for its educational benefits, some argue that a negative side effect is beginning to take hold in our classrooms. Cyber slang is suspected of damaging students’ writing acumen. Cyber slang is a term used to describe shortcuts, alternative words, or even symbols used to convey thoughts in an electronic document. Because so many digital media limit the number of characters an author can use at a time, students are becoming more creative to get the most out of their limited space.
8 Social Media Must-Follows for ELA Teachers.

In order to use social media effectively, it's important for teachers to follow other effective social media users. This is a great list of useful social media accounts that will provide great ideas and examples for English teachers. – brianbetteridge

Social media Shakespeare: An idea whose time has finally come.

Shakespeare is difficult for even the best students, but as this article explains that his work is well suited for our modern social media. It provides excellent ideas for teaching Shakespeare using different networks. – brianbetteridge

Shakespeare and Social Media - O'Neill - 2015 - Literature Compass.

This scholarly article provides excellent rationale, with support, for the use of social media in Shakespeare instruction. It is a perfect foundation for other resources in this list that deal with Literature, and Shakespeare specifically. – brianbetteridge

Ten Social Networks For Readers.

This list provides 10 suggestions for social media networks, such as Goodreads, that will stimulate reading and increase literacy among students. – brianbetteridge

Social media in literacy education: Exploring social reading with pre-service teachers.

This scholarly article discusses reading as a "social practice." It clearly connects reading to social learning, and how social media can help further that concept. – brianbetteridge

Writing, Reading, and Social Media Literacy.

This case study identifies the real-world impact of social media on literacy. It demonstrates how using social media in reading classes can impact students in the future, outside of school. – brianbetteridge